Preparation is presented as a force multiplier: under stress, you don’t become creative—you fall back on what you wrote down.
The one-sheet is a compact briefing. Start with a clear best-case goal, stated as a specific outcome, not a mood. Add a short summary of known facts and pressures on both sides. Then write an accusation audit: the negative assumptions they may carry about you, stated plainly so you can defuse them early.
Next list a handful of labels you expect to use, and a set of calibrated “how/what” questions that will expose constraints, deal killers, and decision makers. Finally, sketch non-cash levers and trades—things that cost you little but matter to them.
The point is not bureaucracy. It’s clarity. When the conversation heats up, you can stay calm because the thinking is already done.